Combined technique analysis of the composition of Punic make-up materials

Ten archaeological Punic make-up samples from Tunisia dating from the 4th to the 1st centuries BC were analysed by several techniques including Raman microscopy and synchrotron X-ray diffraction in order to determine their compositions. Eight samples were red and found to contain either quartz and cinnabar or quartz and haematite. The remaining two samples were pink, the main diffracting phase in them being quartz. Examination of these two samples by optical microscopy and by illumination under a UV lamp suggest that the pink dye is madder. These findings reveal the identities of the materials used by Carthaginians for cosmetic and/or ritual make-up purposes.